July 24 – 26, 2014 –
We wondered if we were back in the ICW? It sure looked like it. We motored north with little wind to the city of Preveza. Preveza is a fairly large commercial and yacht harbor at the entrance to a large inland gulf which is about 25 miles long called the Gulf of Amvrakia. To get there we ahd to cross from the east side of Lefkas, on the inside, to the Ionian Sea. We went for several miles up a narrow canal and through a pontoon bridge. Of course we had to hover and wait for a scheduled opening, then allow the right-of-way traffic from the north to clear before going through. Sound familiar? It was just like being back in the ICW (Intra Coastal Waterway) in the US. Perhaps they should call it the “Ionian Coastal Waterway” (joke).
Once through, the water was deep and indigo blue again. We had a short sail before heading into Preveza. Preveza is a small city and commercial port sitting at the entrance to a large inland bay, Amvrakikos Kolpsos. We found a great anchorage just north of the city and dinghied in to clear (a unique requirement that Greece has despite the fact they are in the EU). We finally found the right office of the Port Police behind an obscure building up two flights of stairs. We were told that after we filled out forms and crew lists here we needed to visit the Customs office and then come back here to do more paperwork. Not the most efficient and logical we have experienced but not the worst either. Unfortunately, we were told the Customs Office is now closed. It is Friday and customs would not re-open until Monday morning. What to do? Well, we’re cruising. We change the schedule: let’s postpone Corfu until next year when we are headed that direction and enjoy this area. We will see the small city here. Not touristy it would be more of the cultural experience we were looking for. Perhaps we would even go for a day sail on Sunday—there’s a new concept…
It turns out Preveza is an interesting little city. We found most cruisers med-moor to the city quay just inside the breakwater for the marina. The power is not working and there is no water but the price is right (between 0 and 15€ per night). The quay is filled with restaurants, bars (coffee and alcohol) and gelato shops; and everything gets busy later in the evening. Several streets back from the waterfront it becomes less touristy and more quaint, in other words, quintessential Greek The restaurants all served good food, but in the usual Greek style, every item on the menu is a single item that you order separately; no great descriptions of artfully coordinated dishes. Each item arrives at the table in no sequence whatsoever other than perhaps the order they happen to come out of the kitchen.
Another interesting favorite of the Greeks is their omnipresent frappe. It is made with strong cold coffee with a froth on top. You can choose to add milk or sugar. It is enjoyed all day long. It is the most popular non-alcoholic drink of Greece–a national drink .
When we left for Greece it was during their referendum for accepting the terms of the European bankers. We were not sure what to expect but found the people to be pretty unflustered by the entire event. About the only noticeable inconvenience were the lines at the ATM machines, which at times were around the block.
After two nights we decided we would leave the anchorage we were in for a day sail and come back to the quay for our Monday check-in. Leaving the anchorage on Sunday morning was delayed by an unusual event. Often we plan a departure for a predetermined time that is then delayed somewhat for one reason or another. Usually it is a mechanical problem or question, or some problem that was discovered during the departure check list. Today we were delayed due to network security, a first!
The story goes like this: A seasoned looking cruiser in the anchorage, whom we had introduced ourselves to earlier, came over to say “good-by”. After providing some helpful local information and exchanging pleasantries he thanked us for our internet before motoring off in his dinghy. Later, I said to Sara that was nice of her to give him the password to our wifi so he could access the internet. She said she hadn’t: “I thought you did”. I said, I hadn’t. Puzzled, we looked into our local wifi security. One of our access IDs is for guests and we are happy to share the password with other cruisers we know. However, the other access ID which we use for our own portable devices was set up by our network guy in Gibraltar, and we never have to put in the password. It turns out, unbeknownst to us, the person setting up the network let the password default to the standard Cisco password for that router. All this person did was to put in the standard password that he knew. Clever fellow. After a few hours we had the network passwords reset and we resolved our big security breach. Off for a Sunday day sail!